Hyderabad: Congress let down Palamuru Rangareddy project, alleges Niranjan Reddy

Hyderabad: State Agriculture Minister S Niranjan Reddy lashed out at Congress senior leader Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka asking him to first know the history of Palamuru before talking.

Responding to the padayatra of the Congress leader, the Minister asked him to recall how the State Congress in United Andhra Pradesh had written a letter to its high command asking to form 'Telanganuttarandhra'. While people in Telangana were fighting for the formation of a separate state, the State Congress leaders wrote to the Congress high command to integrate Srikakulam, Visakhapatnam and Vizianagaram districts of Andhra Pradesh with Telangana, and form 'Telanganuttarandhra', he said.

He said it was the Congress party which had created hurdles to the Palamuru Rangareddy project. He said it was the Congress party which had asked for taking water from the 6 TMC capacity of the Jurala Project instead of the 263 TMC capacity of the Srisailam Project.

Niranjan Reddy said that the State government has brought the Palamuru Rangareddy project to its final stages after facing hundreds of cases. The Congress leader should know what had happened and what is happening, he said.

He said it was Congress which is responsible for the hunger deaths and migration from Palamuru. He said Palamuru was devastated in four decades of rule under Congress. He alleged Congress allowed Pothireddy Padu Project to come up at the cost of Palamuru. Also, it had dragged executing Jurala, Nettempadu, Bhima, and Kalwakurthy lift irrigation projects for decades because of the Congress, he said.

Niranjan Reddy said the Jurala project started receiving water only after the formation of Telangana. It was only after the creation of a separate state that Kalwakurthy, Bhima and Nettempadu projects were completed, he added.

That apart, it was due to Congress that the lift irrigation project works have come to a grinding halt and Congress has no moral right to question the State government on the Palamuru Rangareddy project, he said.

He also asked why the Congress MPs have never asked the Centre in Parliament to finalise the share of the State in Krishna waters.

It would be good on the part of Bhatti Vikramarka to talk less about the Palamuru Rangareddy and other irrigation projects. Otherwise, it is the Congress which has to cut a sorry face, he said.